About This Episode:

Peter Fernandes is many things at once: an award-winning actor, a magic and illusions designer, and now a first-time director at one of Canada's most celebrated theatre festivals. In this conversation, Peter joins Phil to talk about what it's like to make your directing debut with Sleuth at the Shaw Festival, a mystery that demands the same sleight-of-hand thinking Peter has honed as a magic practitioner. The terror of stepping into a new role, the joy of being trusted with it, and the surprise of discovering how much his illusion work shaped his directorial instincts.

This episode explores:

Directing Sleuth at the Shaw Festival as a debut; and why pure excitement quickly turned to terror
How magic and illusions design shaped Peter's approach to staging a mystery
Hosting the Dora Awards while being nominated for one (and which one was scarier)
The case for taking comedy - and musical theatre - as seriously as any other art form
And much more!

Guest: 🎭 Peter Fernandes

Peter Fernandes is an award-winning theatre creator based out of Toronto. As a performer, select credits include One For the Pot, One Man Two Guvnors, The Importance of Being Earnest, Damn Yankees, Charley’s Aunt, Christmas Carol, The Russian Play, Brigadoon (Shaw); Fat Ham (Canadian Stage) Bidding War, The Master Plan, Fifteen Dogs (Crow’s); Almost a Full Moon, Peter and the Starcatcher (Citadel); Rose, Father Comes Home From the Wars, Alligator Pie, Incident at Vichy, The Just, Marat/Sade, The Dybbuk, Spoon River, Tartuffe, The Crucible, Idiot’s Delight (Soulpepper); Vietgone (RMTC); Romeo & Juliet, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Love & Information, Twelfth Night, King Lear (Canadian Stage); Jerusalem (Outside the March/Company); You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown! (MTYP); Onegin (NAC/Musical Stage); Passing Strange (Musical Stage/Obsidian). Creative credits include: Director, Sleuth (SHAW) Associate Director - Wights, Octet, A Strange Loop (Crow’s), Assistant Director - Sherlock Holmes and the mystery of the Human Heart, Witness for the Prosecution (Shaw) Magic Consultant - Bremen Town (Tarragon) Trident Moon (Crow’s), Snow in Midsummer (Shaw), Illusions Assistant - Fat Ham (Broadway), The Witches - workshop (UK)

Connect with Peter:

🌐 Website: peterfernandes.ca

📸 Instagram: @pjrfernandes

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